


D&D&Mssrs

by HiiighNooon



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: D&D, Dungeons and Dragons, F/M, M/M, Magical Tattoos, Magical d&d, Marauders Friendship, Marauders' Era, Muggleborns, Other, interhouse friendship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-27
Updated: 2016-12-27
Packaged: 2018-09-12 14:50:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,118
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9077335
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HiiighNooon/pseuds/HiiighNooon
Summary: Wherein Remus introduces the marauders to magical D&D, becomes the official Dungeon Master of Gryffindor, Muggleborns start inter-house tournaments, Sirius Black invents a real magic missile spell, and McGonagall goes prematurely grey. (Knowledge of D&D or D&D rules not needed to understand)





	

**Author's Note:**

> A small note beforehand: for ease of series, all of the current D&D editions are out at the time of this fic. Whether you'd like to think of this as a modern-day marauders or a time-alt for D&D is up to you, it shouldn't come into play too much. 
> 
> Thank you for reading!

The first time it got brought up Peter was the only one that knew what Remus was talking about.

The boys were all flopped on their beds, putting off packing until the last moment before the summer break. The heat had already set in, and while the windows were shut tight with cooling charms in place, the castle itself had enough gaps and cracks that it had everyone sweating through their cloaks.

Sirius was flopped on the floor, the cool stone providing some relief. James was on his own bed, a quidditch magazine repurposed for a fan. Peter had long since curled up on the window-seat, pressed up against the glass, trying to leech off the cooling charms as much as possible. Remus seemed to be only one unaffected, still in full uniform, but then he was the only one who could efficiently cast a cooling charm. Even with it though his hair was damp with sweat, face flushed with exhaustion.

“How can you even think about doing homework in this heat, Remus?” Sirius glared up at what he could see of Remus.

“Not my fault you all can’t cast a simple charm.”

“There’s nothing _simple_ about it, Moony.”

“It’s a _fourth year_ charm, Pads.”

Sirius scoffed. “You know none of us took charms seriously.”

“Exactly how you lot got yourselves in this situation in the first place.”

“You could just do them _for_ us.”

“But then how would you learn your lesson?” Remus looked away from his notes briefly to smirk down at Sirius.

Sirius made a noise of dismissal, rolling onto his back. Whatever Remus was working on had filled several pages, Sirius catching glimpses of scribbled paragraphs and sketched rooms through the backs of the pages.

“What _are_ you working on, Moony?” They’d finished the map months ago, so it couldn’t be that. The only classes they didn’t have together were Arithmancy and Muggle Studies, Remus not needing the latter after growing up with a muggleborn mother, and Sirius saw no point in taking upper level math. Their sixth year was supposed to be _fun_ , not hard. Whatever Remus was working on though looked nothing like Arithmancy, too many loose scribbles to be anything close to his school notes.

“Just brushing up on notes, Pads.”

Sirius frowned at that, sitting up. He’d seen Remus’ notes before. They were _color-coded_ for Pete’s sake. (Literally at that, Peter often times asking to use Remus’ notes, his own a disorganized chickenscratch.) Sirius wasn’t even sure how Remus managed to charm his ink into so many colors, or how he kept track of them all for classes.

No, Remus’ notes were organized and perfect and definitely not whatever he was working on now.

Slowly, as to not draw attention, Sirius drew out his wand.

“ _Accio pa_ -”

“ _Expelliarmus_.” Remus had Sirius’ wand flying across the room before he could realize what had happened. Remus flashed a grin in mock-innocence, Sirius scowling. “Not all of us have a perfect memory, Sirius. I do need to review.”

“But those aren’t notes,” Sirius muttered, getting up to fetch after his wand.

“Leave Remus alone, Sirius. You already got us banned from cooling charms.” James’ voice was muffled slightly from where he was flopped face-first. His ‘fan’ was looking sadder by the minute, the charm James had used to make it float and wave wearing off into more of an undignified flop and shudder every few seconds.

“I didn’t get us _banned._ ” Sirius stuck his tongue out. “It’s not my fault Moony’s got a stick up his arse-”

“Here we go again,” Peter said.

“-and won’t charm us!”

“Yeah, but _you_ were the one that told him we’d skipped that homework to go play quidditch.” James’ head poked up momentarily to glare at Sirius.

“…Fair.” Shrugging, Sirius turned on his heel, and without hesitating ran and swan dived on top of Remus. Having been looking at his notes Remus didn’t have time to react, letting out a squawk of protest as Sirius’ jump sent both of them sprawling to the floor, notes and parchment flying every which way.

“ _SIRIUS_.”

“ _Moony._ ” Sirius only grinned from atop Remus, sing-song in the face of an irritated werewolf.

“Get off!”

“Here? Why Moony, how scandalous!” Sirius feigned swooning, giggling as Remus pushed him off with a sigh.

“Twit.”

Sirius shot finger pistols at Remus before twisting to lay on his stomach, grabbing the nearest piece of paper. “So what have we here?”

“Sirius, _no!_ ” Remus’ hands tried to snatch the parchment away, but Sirius rolled away, skirting under his bed and out the other side. “Honestly Padfoot!”

Sirius squinted at the paper, trying to make heads or tails of it. It looked to be a map from aerial view, with similar enchantments as the Marauders’ Map. As he watched, footprints walked through, every so often a note or pair of clawed footprints appearing.

“What’s a base AC, Moony?”

“Oh, give me– _accio!_ ” The paper flew out of Sirius’ hand and back into the stack Remus had assembled. The boy was flushed, clothing askew from where he’d been dragged to the floor, scowling at Sirius.

“AC?” Peter poked up from his bed, face twisting in confusion. “Like Armor Class?”

Remus froze at Peter’s comment, face flushing in embarrassment for a moment. By the time he’d turned to the rest of the room his face was composed, if a little red. “I forget you have a Muggle dad, Pete.”

Sirius watched as Peter made his way across the room, taking some of the notes from Remus’ pile. “Hey, how come he can-”

“Are you making a campaign?” Peter cut over Sirius in excitement, Remus’ eyebrows shooting up. It was no question of Peter’s meekness, and interrupting someone was still a rare task, even in his sixth year. “What edition?”

“A few mates back at home and I always have a summer game. It’s my turn to DM this year. And uh, 3.5.” Remus gently took the paper back, Peter near bouncing out of his shoes with excitement as he scanned the rest of the stack.

Sirius shot a look over to James, who shrugged, mouthing “muggles” before flopping down again in defeat.

“More a Pathfinder fan myself, but wow, this is brilliant, Remus! I played a few games with my family before I started here, but that was small, this is…wow!” Peter was gushing, Remus fixed with the half-proud, half-embarrassed look that he got whenever someone complimented him. “And charming the paper–does it show spells as well?”

Remus seemed to light up at that, crowding in the space with Peter, excitedly pointing at certain spots. “Oh yes. It takes into accounts the various classes, and I can update the dungeon in real time to show spell damage, familiars, etc. See, here there’s–” and he lapsed into a bunch of words and numbers Sirius didn’t understand. Peter seemed to follow it all easily enough though, a fact that had Sirius scowling.

“What’re you on about then? Some game?” Sirius stood up and walked closer to them, neck cranked to take a look at the page.

Remus blushed again, tugging the papers close again, grinning sheepishly. “I don’t imagine you’d be too interested in it Sirius. There’s _math_.”

Sirius waved a hand at him. “If Wormy can do it so can I.” Ignoring the insulted look he got he made grabby hands at Remus, grin wide.

Remus wasn’t too amused. “Play nice, Sirius.” Instead of handing the paper to Sirius he turned, silently waving his wand and sorting all the papers once more as Remus dug through his trunk. Papers and books took up most of the space, a few minutes passing before Remus was able to draw out a few thin books. Remus passed them to him, Sirius frowning as he looked down at the cover.

“ _Dungeons and Dragons: Player Handbook_. What’s this then, the rules?” Sirius looked at the size of it in speculation, as well as the other two he was handed. One had a giant eye on it, the other a globe. “You didn’t say I’d have to _read_.” He stuck out his tongue. “You would like homework: the game.”

Remus rolled his eyes at him, moving to push all the papers into a beat up folder. “Never said you had to play it, Sirius. Knowing you though you’d throw a fit if we didn’t at least offer it to you.” Remus threw a grin over his shoulder at Sirius, who had started to peek inside the book. “Don’t worry though, Pads, there are pictures.”

Sirius didn’t pretend that wasn’t important, flipping through the book with more energy. “So what, it’s a game where Muggles pretend to be magic?”

Remus’ reply was cut off by Peter, the shorter boy nearly bursting with excitement. “Oh, it’s so much more than that! There are all kinds of classes and monsters and alignments, and you can play as someone you aren’t, and there’s all kinds of traps and fights and people you have to get around and-”

Sirius tuned him out, flopping down on the floor with the book, heat all but forgotten. “So how do you win?”

Remus answered this, Peter still ranting happily. “Depends on the game. Every game consists of two sides: the players, and the Dungeon Master. The DM doesn’t get to play, per say, but plans out all of the maps, challenges, rewards and plot of the campaign. All the stuff the players interact with. As players, your job would be to complete quests, or do anything you want, depending on your character.”

“-and this one time my dad was a sorcerer and he made this _huge-_ ” Peter continued on as white noise in the background.

“What kinds of characters are there?” Sirius was already flipping back towards the beginning of the book, where he’d seen more pictures of people.

“There’s, oh here, the book is rather sad on print.” Remus tapped the book with his wand. Sirius jumped back as the words and pictures leapt off the pages, floating chaotically in the air around them. Remus cleared his throat. “Character races, please.”

There was the sound of pages rustling as the words swirled, then Sirius was looking at the hazy images of seven or so people, the largest no more than a foot tall in the scale. The smallest was only a few inches. They were all see through and moving, like the ghosts of the castle, but seemed on a loop of motion and animation, like imperfect enchanted portraits.

“So here,” and Remus leaned forward, tapping on one of the medium sized figures, “is your basic human. There’s also gnomes, elves, dwarfs, halflings-”

“What in Merlin’s name is a _halfling_?” As Sirius spoke the images flickered, six of the figures floating backwards while the smallest of the bunch scaled larger, notes and numbers appearing under it. “Oh.” He looked up at Remus. “This is some pretty advanced magic, Moony.”

Remus blushed, rubbing at the back of his neck. “It’s nothing really. The basic charms was already set up from the map–”

“Which you did most of.”

“–I just needed to tweak some things, make it more voice and touch respondent.” They watched as Peter was poking at the different races, each time he’d tap one the highlighted one switching out. “I plan to refine the process a bit, then maybe present it for charms thesis in the spring. A hybridization of a muggle and wizarding game, not something you usually see. Hope to get charm work recognized, y’know? May be able to get some funding for it. Be nice to have– well, it’d be nice for people to take interest,” Remus said in a rush.

Sirius watched him for a moment, the high flush making Remus’ freckles pop out the more he talked. “Alright then,” he finally announced, clapping his hands together. “Which one is the best looking?”

If you listened closely you could barely hear over the sound of rustling pages Remus and Peter’s comment of “you are such a bard.”

 

* * *

 

Remus ended up letting Sirius take the books back with them to the Potter’s over the summer. James had seemed uninterested in it when they were leaving, but over the summer Remus got increasingly more and more letters from James and Sirius, asking about technicalities and how to do so-and-so. By the end of it, he’d gotten owl after owl asking if character specifics would work that his neighbors had started to comment on the amount of owl spottings in the daytime. He’d sent off one final letter just telling them to come up with character backgrounds until they could meet in person and hadn’t heard back. He didn’t question it, relaxing in the interim and focusing on the campaign he was running for his muggle friends. There were a few tweaks he’d need to make to the storyline later when he made the final version, especially if Sirius and James were as interested as they seemed. His friends were clever for muggles, but he knew the craftiness James, Sirius and even Peter could present when faced with a puzzle.

Peter was a much calmer presence, owling only once or twice with questions regarding the world and expansion limitations before switching to other, non-D&D topics. As the summer neared to an end Remus got a single owl from James and Sirius, the handwriting switching as each boy took over the parchment, a few places the words cramped and fighting as the other apparently didn’t want to give up his question. The parchment was smudged with inky fingerprints, the only neat part of the paper the signatures.

 

 **_Mssr. Moony,_ **

**_Been a time since we wrote, though from what you said last time about your muggle neighbors it’s probably best. Though, to be fair, they wouldn’t know a wizard if I walked up and vanished their nose! How’re you doing then with your non-magic mates then? How’d they react to the campaign? Peter won’t tell us any of the things he remembers from your notes, thought I’m beginning to think it’s a load that he remembers anything at all. I mean, you weren’t there when we were training to be animagi, but I’m surprised he didn’t end up with his arse round front on accident from all the misteps he made._ **

**_In other news, the summer’s been good over here, if not a bloody hot and humid._ **

_Honestly Remus, he does not shut up about the humidity. Wailing at every hour of the morn’ about how his hair’s gone all frizzy, then goes and romps ‘bout as Padfoot in the mud and brush only to whine about it later. Pedigrees, I swear._

**_Don’t listen to Prongs, I do not_ ** **wail. _And he’s one to talk; pining after Evans all summer. Havn’t the heart to tell him how pathetic he looks all droppy like that._**

 _Like Sirius’s any better, what with–_ and here the page was splattered with ink and scratched out words, James’ handwriting barely visible underneath some of it, chickenscratch compared to Sirius’ looping scrawl. Still though, it wasn’t readable, Remus skimming down the page to where it looks like a truce had been called. The paper was crumpled, clearly from tight fists around it and then being smoothed out afterwards.

_Anyways, we both can’t wait to see you and Pete down in Diagon in a week’s time. Your parents are still okay with you staying at mine for a week, yeah? Don’t forget trunks, Rem! Showed Pads the creek round back of our place when we got here and I swear not even magic can get all the muddy pawprints out of the carpet. Still smells like wet dog in here too._

**_I am a delight I do not smell Remus don’t listen to him._ **

_So you have that to look forward to upon arriving._

**_It’ll be a blast with the whole gang here, Moony. We set up one of Mr. Potter’s old camping tents so we’ll be braving it against the el’ments like muggles!_** Remus snorted at this, knowing Sirius’ version of ‘roughing it’ came nowhere close to what muggle camping was like. **_So we’ll be sleeping outside, you, me, Prongs and Pete. Course that means putting up with Pete’s snoring but if I’ve put up with James all summer I can deal with two sleeping dragons, eh?_**

 _Speaking of dragons, can’t wait till you get here to run some ideas with you. Pete’s been helping us best he can with rules. Talk about_ scary _, being tutored by Pete instead of the other way around. Sirius’s finally settled on a bard, and I’m running a paladin. Pete’s been teaching us about alignments and gods too. He wants me to pass on that Sirius is Chaotic Neutral, no surprise there from what I’ve gathered, and Pete says I’m Lawful Stupid. I thought your intelligence was related to your INT modifier though, not alignment? May need you to run that by us one more time, Wormy refuses to answer._

**_Pete told me. Don’t tell James._ **

_Sod off, Pads._

**_Shh, it’ll be fun, don’t worry. But yes, don’t worry Remus, I’ve scribed lines to a few songs, even some muggle ones you and Pete showed me on his mugglebox._** Peter had gotten a used muggle cassette player to work after some charmwork with Remus, Sirius and James baffled by all the new genres and muggle artists. **_I’ll be able to serenade our party to victory no problem._**

_Remus please tell him he doesn’t have to actually sing he’s been practicing all summer I swear Padfoot sings better than him. My mom ran up here once cause she thought he was in pain._

**_That happened only once, and I’ve gotten much better since then!_** Remus doubted this, having heard Sirius’ drunken renditions on many occasion.

_Lies._

Here were a few doodles, mainly of Sirius singing, James lying on the floor with eyes X’d out. Tapping his wand to the doodle it moved slightly, mainly Sirius swaying in place and singing as James’ character looped from standing to swooning and dying on the floor. Audio drifted up lightly from the page, exaggerated groaning at James’ behalf and something that sounded like a cow being strangled. It took Remus a moment to realize that was Sirius singing. Stifling a laugh, he hoped that only James’ mimicking him and not the actual thing.

 **_But we can’t wait to see you Moony, it’ll be great. Don’t forget, 12 o’clock sharp on the 22 nd at the floo gates. I’d say don’t be late, but we all know Pete will be anyways. _ ** ****

**_Miss you Moony._ ** _Can’t wait to see you Remus!_

_Sincerely,_

_Mssr. Prongs ** & Mssr. Padfoot**_


End file.
